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This content comes from a Full-Text Transcript of the program.

BRIAN WILLIAMS, anchor:The word arrived today. Three
women
have been awarded the
Nobel Peace Prize
. Late today
President Obama
praised their power, their determination, their spirit.
NBC
's
Andrea Mitchell
has more for us tonight on who these
women
are and how they are changing the world.

ANDREA MITCHELL reporting:It was a signal meant to recognize and promote
women
in the struggle for freedom and equal rights. From
Yemen
, the first Arab woman to receive the prize,
Tawakkul Karman
, a leader in the fight for regime change and a symbol for the Arab spring itself.
Thirty-two
years old, a mother of three, and on the front lines even as she learned of her prize. From
Liberia
, long torn by
civil war
, 72-year-old
Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf
, the first woman democratically elected president of an African nation. Six years ago she defeated dictator
Charles Taylor
, and she's up for re-election next week. Also from
Liberia Leymah Gbowee
, who led a
women
's movement against rape and violence.

Ms. LEYMAH GBOWEE:The
women
of
Liberia
, including the
IDPs
, we are tired of war.

MITCHELL:Today
Gbowee
talked to us about why the
women
mobilized to challenge the regime.

Ms. GBOWEE:We have gotten to the place where death was better than life, and we felt like as
women
of
Liberia
we needed to do something to change the trend of our lives.

MITCHELL:Today's
Nobel Prize
validates her struggle and the courage of
women
fighting for freedom around the world.
Andrea Mitchell
, NBC News, Washington.